The Next King
by KingodtheNight
Summary: Sam and Dean investigate a strange occurrence outside Topeca and find an old friend they haven't seen in a while, who brings them a vital piece of information


The Next King

INT. RUFU'S CABIN-DAY

Jo sits in a chair across from Dean, she's seven months pregnant and very confused.

JO So, even if both of us do everything we can to avoid this life, he still gets dragged in.

Dean nods.

DEAN He gets to watch you, me and Sam bite the bullet too.

Jo puts her hand to her forehead and looks down.

JO Why the Hell did I have to get a crush on you, of all people?

DEAN Oh, that's nice, Jo.

JO Can you blame me, the one thing worse than the devil's coming after our son, and he hasn't even been born yet.

Dean nods, agreeing with Jo. Jo takes a deep breath.

JO Is he a good hunter at least?

A small smile forms on Dean's face.

DEAN Could'a kicked my ass with both hands tied behind his back.

Jo smiles.

JO Maybe you should stick around then, I'll just have him beat ya up every time you piss me off.

The door opens Sam steps in. He walks toward Dean.

SAM We got a lead on something.

He tosses the newspaper into Dean's lap.

SAM Temperature drops 25 degrees in Topeca, but only within a 3 mile range.

Dean scans the article in the newspaper.

DEAN The last time we saw something like this, it turned out to be the devil himself.

SAM Maybe the new guy has a similar effect.

Dean looks up at Sam.

DEAN Sam, we don't know what it is, we can't even slow it down.

SAM Are you trying to say you wanna stay out of this? Imagine what that thing could be doing?!

DEAN We'll just get killed if we go after this thing, even Azariah said he doesn't know how to fight it!

JO You should go Dean.

Dean turns his attention away from Sam and looks at Jo.

JO (CONT'D)  
You don't know if this really was caused by that thing, we need to find out.

Dean struggles to find the right words.

DEAN Jo, I...

JO I'll be fine Dean, just make sure you bring your sorry ass back here.

EXT. RUFUS'S CABIN-DAY

Sam and Dean toss some stuff into the Impala's trunk. Adam steps up to them holding a shotgun.

Dean looks over his shoulder.

DEAN What do you think you're gonna do with that?

ADAM Sam said I could come.

Dean looks at Sam.

DEAN Are you insane?

SAM He's a good shot now, and we could use all the help we can get.

DEAN We'll call Garth if we need backup, we can't bring him into this.

ADAM I'm already in it.

Adam walks over to the side of the Impala and pulls the door open.

ADAM (CONT'D)  
I don't think they can hurt me anyway, not after what I've already been through.

Dean looks into Sam's eyes scornfully.

DEAN If anything happens to him, I'll kill you.

EXT. ROAD-NIGHT

The Impala flies down an empty road surrounded by trees, there's no other cars around.

INT. IMPALA-CONTINUOUS

Adam lies stretched out across the backseat. Dean drives while Sam studies a group of newspapers in front of him.

DEAN Ya know this could be a trap, I met that thing when Azariah gave me a flash forward. It said it killed all of us, me, you, Jo.

Sam slides the newspapers down and looks up.

SAM What was it like, a demon, a leviathan?

Dean takes a deep breath and let's it out.

DEAN I don't even know, nothing we threw at it did anything. It's something no one's ever seen before.

SAM Did it say when it kills us?

DEAN It didn't give me specifics, but isn't knowing it's gonna kill us enough.

Sam forces himself not to respond. He looks down at the newspapers again.

He notices something.

SAM Hmm.

DEAN What?

SAM I just noticed something, the area where the temperature went down. It's a big circle, and the closer to the center you were the colder it got.

DEAN So where's the center?

SAM It looks like it's not even in the city.

INT. WOODS-DAY

Dean, Sam and Adam all stand in the woods, all carrying guns and duffle bags.

DEAN Man I hate hiking. It had to be in here of all places.

SAM Let's just look around.

The three walk along a trail, Sam's focused, Dean's annoyed and Adam's indifferent.

DEAN And we've got no way of telling where this thing might be.

SAM Just luck.

DEAN (sarcastic)  
Terrific.

BAM. A shot rings out through the woods. The brothers stop cold in their tracks. Sam puts both his arms up and signals for them to kneel. The three slowly drop to their knees.

SAM (shouting)  
Three guys, up here!

HUNTER (shouting)  
Hold on! I'll come to you.

The hunter runs up to the three and looks them over.

HUNTER Sorry guys, thought I saw a buck.

DEAN A little early to be hunting, isn't it.

HUNTER Bending the rules never hurt anybody.

He lifts his rifle, aiming at the three. He eyes become a demonic black.

HUNTER But I'm gonna kill you.

DEAN Son of a bitch! I knew this was a trap.

HUNTER Oh, it's no trap, but whatever caused this, you're sure as hell not getting to it first.

A hand reaches out of the woods and covers the hunter's face. Light erupts from around the hand. The Hunter falls to the ground dead.

CASTIEL, filthy and atrocious, but still Cas, steps out of the brush.

DEAN Cas?

INT. MOTEL-ROOM

Castiel sits in a chair in front of Dean and Sam, Adam sits on the bed not paying attention to what's going on.

DEAN Cas, how the hell did you get out?

CASTIEL I don't know, after you left, something else came. The Leviathans ran from it, but it chased them, it killed them.

SAM What was it?

CASTIEL I didn't stay to find out. I fled, went back to the river where you found me. It was only after that I found out some of the stories I've heard are true.

DEAN Stories, what stories.

CASTIEL The legends of The First. They've always said that he was the first thing my father ever created but he was also the first to choose not to obey him. Purgatory was created to conceal him, not the Leviathans.

Sam and Dean look at each other for a moment, then back at Castiel.

CASTIEL (CONT'D)  
He's more powerful than anything my father created after, even the archangels are weaker. If he's found a way out, then it is almost certain that he won't be stopped.

SAM Cas, what would it take for that thing to get out?

CASTIEL I don't know for sure, but the stories always told that fallen humanity could perform a ritual that would free him.

DEAN Fallen humanity, you mean demons?

CASTIEL Yes.

DEAN How do those stories say to fight it?

CASTIEL They don't.

SAM So this thing's invincible.

CASTIEL I don't believe so.

He sticks his hand into his trench coat.

CASTIEL (CONT'D)  
I found this when I was in Purgatory.

He lays down a tablet, identical to the word of God, in front of the brothers.

CASTIEL I woke up in the woods just after I picked it up.

Sam and Dean stare down at the tablet in awe. Sam picks it up.

SAM Wow.

DEAN We've really gotta find Kevin.

CROWLEY (O.S.)  
That won't be necessary boys.

Sam and Dean turn around, Crowley and Sammael stand on the other side of the room.

Adam leaps to his feet, grabs a shotgun and fires. He hits Crowley in the stomach. Crowley doesn't react at all.

CROWLEY Really.

Crowley waves his hand, Adam falls to the ground and slides across the floor. Crowley and Sammael step forward.

CROWLEY Now, just give me the tablet.

DEAN What do want this for, you can't even read it?!

CROWLEY I can't, but he can.

Crowley points to Sammael.

CASTIEL (scornfully)  
Sammael.

Sammael smiles demonically.

SAMMAEL Hello Castiel.

CROWLEY Fella can barely read it but he still can, now all I need is that little sack of meat growing in your girlfriend's belly, Dean.

Dean's face fills with anger.

He yanks Ruby's Knife from the bag in front of him, he charges Crowley. Crowley waves his hand and Dean flips onto the ground.

Castiel appears behind the demons. Sammael turns around, his face falls right into Castiel's palm. Light erupts from around his hand. Sammael falls to the ground dead.

Castiel raises his other hand, he throws it at Crowley. Crowley catches his hand, Castiel can't move it forward anymore.

CROWLEY Not as easy as it used to be, is it?

Crowley tosses Castiel onto the ground.

Sam jumps onto Crowley's back and dumps a bottle of holy water over his head. Steam rises from Crowley's burning faces, he WHAILS in pain.

Dean climbs back to his feet, he charges Crowley again. Crowley throws his arms up, Dean slams into his arms and drops. Crowley spins and lugs Sam off his shoulders.

Adam pulls a handgun from his belt, he aims and fires. Crowley disappears once the bullet hits him.

Sam lifts his head off the ground, looking at Adam.

SAM How'd you that?

ADAM Rock salt.

Dean jumps off the ground.

DEAN We've gotta go back!

He sprints out of the room without grabbing anything.

EXT. ROAD-DAY

The Impala jets down the road, it looks like it's just a blur.

INT. IMPALA-CONTINUOS

Dean has one hand on the wheel, he holds a phone to his ear with the other, Sam sits next to him, Adam and Castiel sit in the back.

JO (O.S.)  
...sorry I can't come to the phone right now...

Dean yanks the phone away from his ear and ends the call.

DEAN Damn, she's still not picking up.

Dean looks up into the mirror, he sees Castiel.

DEAN Cas when I met that thing it said it ganked me, Sam and Jo, why would it do that?

CASTIEL I'm not sure, the stories I've heard conflict each other sometimes.

DEAN Well do any of them mention a Will Winchester?!

CASTIEL No, but some do mention a child descended from a special bloodline.

Four people stand in the road up ahead of them.

Dean jams on the brakes. The Impala comes to a stop just in front of them.

A man in the center walks over to the driver's side mirror. Dean lets the window go down.

DEAN What the hell's going on here?

The man's eyes turn a demonic black.

DEMON We've just been waiting for you.

Dean ducks down trying to defend himself, the demon tosses its hand through the window. The glass shatters, the demon grabs Dean by the neck and pulls him out.

Sam pulls a bottle of holy water from his jacket, he tosses it in the demon's face. The demon let's go of Dean and throws its hands to its face as it WHAILS in pain.

Castiel appears next to the demon, he grabs the demon's face. Light emerges from his hand, the demon falls to the ground dead.

The other three demons charge the car. Dean struggles to get back in the Impala, Castiel grabs another demon, a second grabs Dean.

Sam and Adam burst out of the Impala. Sam tackles a demon and stabs it through the throat with Ruby's Knife. Adam aims and shoots the demon attacking Dean. The demon falls off Dean.

Dean flip back onto his feet, he throws holy water on the demon's face.

Castiel let's a dead demon fall to the ground, he pounces on the third demon, presses his hand onto its face, light erupts, the demon stops moving.

Dean grabs the car door and pulls himself back to his feet.

DEAN Cas, warp me back to Rufus's place.

CASTIEL I thought you preferred I didn't do that?

DEAN You heard what Crowley said, they're going after Jo! Come on!

CASTIEL Okay.

Castiel walks over to Dean, he puts his hand on his shoulder.

DEAN Take them too.

Castiel looks to Sam and Adam. They step over to Castiel, each touches his free hand. All four disappear.

EXT. RUFUS'S CABIN-CONTINUOUS

Dean, Castiel, Sam and Adam appear. The four stop moving and stare at what's in front of them. Dean takes three steps in front of the others.

DEAN No.

He runs toward the wreckage. Rufus's Cabin is broken into pieces and strewn all over the ground, flames rise up from the burning wood.

DEAN (shouting)  
Jooooooooo!

Sam and Castiel look around, there's no sign of anyone.

CASTIEL Crowley must have known about this location.

SAM Yeah, go figure.

Dean climbs on top of the rubble, he lifts pieces of the broken wood and tosses it out of his way.

DEAN Joooooooo!

Sam walks along the treeline, he looks into the woods.

SAM Jo, where are you?!

There's no response.

Dean tosses a broken piece of stone out of the pile. He cringes in pain, covering one hand over the other. He pulls his hand up to his eyes and stares down at it. The entire palm is burned red.

Dean closes his eyes, takes a deep breath and grabs another piece wood.

Castiel looks to Adam.

CASTIEL I don't understand what's going on.

ADAM My brother's girlfriend, she's knocked up and they're afraid the demons got her.

Castiel looks over to Dean. A gust of the wind blows, Adam is gone.

Castiel looks around the surrounding area, Sam and Dean are gone too. He walks to the front of the burning cabin, he turns around and stares into the woods.

CASTIEL Sam!? Dean?!

AZARIAH (O.S.)  
Don't worry, they're safe.

Castiel turns to his side, Azariah stands beside the burning cabin.

CASTIEL Azariah?

AZARIAH Hello Castiel.

INT. ABANDONED CHURCH-CONTINUOUS

Dean, Sam and Adam, lay on the ground surrounded by pews. The three push themselves off the ground, turning their heads from side to side as they rise.

DEAN Where the hell are we?

KEVIN (O.S.)  
Angel base.

Kevin and Jo step down the center aisle. All three hunters notice the two.

DEAN Jo!

Dean leaps to his feet and runs to Jo, he envelopes her in a bear hug.

DEAN What happened?

JO Demons showed up at the cabin, then I just found myself here.

Dean hugs her again and kisses her on the cheek.

Sam stares at Kevin.

SAM Kevin?

KEVIN Hi Sam.

Sam strides over to Kevin.

SAM Where the Hell have you been?

KEVIN Here, working with the angels.

Dean and Jo look away from each other and to Kevin and Sam.

DEAN Here? We've spent the last seven months looking for you.

KEVIN The angels said they needed to keep you guys on the road, they said you needed to learn how to fight this war.

DEAN What the hell does that mean?!

Sam grabs Kevin by the shoulder and pulls his face toward his. They meet eyes, Sam's glare could make him answer any question.

SAM Kevin, what's going on here.

KEVIN Azariah's preparing for something.

DEAN For what?

KEVIN To fight The First.


End file.
